Amy
by Grizabella
Summary: Amy Blake thinks she's an ordinary girl. So what's this?
1. One

A/N: Alright, this is the very last time this story will be revised before I write a new chapter. Much love to my new beta reader, Jaqueline, without whom I'd never have gotten interested in this fic again.  
  
There may be fewer chapters now, but the story is a little bit longer than it was before.  
  
Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter. Amy and her family, and Claudia and whatever family I introduce to this story, were created by me, as was this story line.  
  
Claimer: If you don't leave a review, I'll eat your liver.  
  
~  
  
Amy Blake was a seemingly ordinary girl. She went to school. When she wasn't at school, she would usually be found reading a book or doing homework or chores. Nothing very exciting really happened to her.  
  
Of course, there was the time when she caught that Dursley kid's hair on fire when he was chasing her in school. And there was also the time where she somehow ended up hanging off of the basketball hoop of the park while being chased by a dog. Amy seemed to get chased a lot.  
  
But then, Amy couldn't help it. Somehow, bullies were drawn to short, scrawny little people such as herself. There was really only one person that she knew that seemed to get chased more than she did. He was a little taller than she was. He was also somehow skinnier than her. This boy had dark hair that seemed to stick out in all directions and bright, green eyes. None of this was really peculiar. No, the only really strange thing about this boy was that he had a lightning-shaped scar on his forehead. Amy didn't know his name, but she did sort of pity him. The Dursley boy and his gang of idiots always seemed to pick on this boy more than the rest of the kids.  
  
Amy's home life wasn't much better, either. Since she was the oldest of eight kids, she was expected to keep them out of trouble, make sure everything around their small house was tidy, plus keep her good marks in school. It was almost enough to make a preacher lose his religion!  
  
But all this changed the summer Amy turned eleven. Her parents were both at work and most of her siblings were at church camp, so she had only her baby sister, Brittany, to look after. Amy had just finished putting her sister down for a nap and sat down with a book when a large snowy owl swooped in the window, dropped a letter in her lap, and flew back out again.  
  
"What's this," she asked herself, peering at the envelope. It was made of what looked like handmade paper and was sealed with a sort of coat of arms which had a badger, a raven, a lion, and a snake. Looking at the front, she saw the address, written in green ink:  
  
Miss. A. Blake  
  
5 Magnolia Crescent  
  
The Den  
  
Little Whinging  
  
Surrey  
  
Amy stared at the envelope. Who were these people? And how did they know where she slept? Curious, Amy opened the envelope. Inside, she found the same homemade paper, and the letter which was written on the paper had the same green ink as the envelope. It read:  
  
HOGWARTS SCHOOL of  
  
WITCHCRAFT and WIZARDRY  
  
~  
  
Headmaster: Albus Dumbledore  
  
(Order of Merlin, First Class, Grand Sorc., Chf. Warlock,  
  
Supreme Mugwump, International Confed. of Wizards)  
  
Dear Miss Blake,  
  
We are pleased to inform you that you have been accepted at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Please find enclosed the list of all necessary books and equipment. Term begins September first; train leaves August thirtieth from King's Cross station, platform nine and three-quarters at eleven o'clock. We await your owl by no later than July thirty-first.  
  
Yours sincerely,  
  
Minerva McGonagall,  
  
Deputy Headmistress  
  
Amy gawked at the letter for a moment, and then looked in the envelope for the supplies list. Sure enough, it was there. Deciding to wait until later to look it over, she carefully folded the letter and placed it back in the envelope. Opening her book, Amy waited for her mother to get home, no longer the ordinary girl she thought herself to be.  
  
~~~~~  
  
When her mother came home with her siblings in tow, Amy didn't mention the strange events that had happened earlier. Instead, she had decided that she'd wait until her father was home and everything was settled down before she would say anything. Instead, Amy put away the groceries and began work on dinner, every now and then glancing to see what progress the clock was making in its inch-by-inch crawl to the six o'clock mark.  
  
Finally, as she was placing the last plate on the table, Amy's father walked in. As an executive at Grunnings, a drill company, her father earned enough money to support his large family. And although he didn't look it, he was a very happy person.  
  
When first meeting him, one might think Amy's father to be a man to avoid if they didn't want trouble. Although these assumptions were not unfounded, they couldn't be more wrong. Mister Blake was just south of seven feet in height, with broad shoulders and some muscles that would make Superman run away in fright. He, like Amy, had light brown hair and stormy grey eyes. However unlike Amy, his eyes were always laughing at some inner joke. The reason behind people's fear of him was beyond his comprehension.  
  
The appearance of the girl's mother could not have been any more different. Mrs. Blake was short with long black hair and sharp dark brown eyes that matched her temperament at times. But she was a woman with a soft heart, and more than willing to sacrifice her own welfare for that of her children.  
  
When Mr. Blake came in, he went straight over and sat down at the table, leaving a large paper bag by the door. The children knew better not to enquire about this, for if it was a present, they wouldn't receive it.  
  
"Hi, Daddy," Amy said with a smile. "Long day?"  
  
The man smiled. "You don't know the half of it." Then, as Amy served everyone, he said a simple, "Thanks, dear," then began eating a bit of salad as Amy sat and served herself.  
  
"So what happened at work," Amy asked, trying to keep her curious mind away from the package, lest she spoil it for her siblings.  
  
"Oh, Dursley was just being a pain, that's all," he replied. "How about you?"  
  
"Everything's good. Actually, something peculiar happened this afternoon..."  
  
Suddenly, everyone's attention was on her. Something interesting? Happening to this family? It seemed too good to be true!  
  
"Well? Out with it," said her mother, in a rare fit of curious enthusiasm.  
  
"Er... right. Well, after I put Brittany down for her nap, I sat down with a book as usual. Then this owl flew in the window and dropped a letter in my lap. Then it flew away." Her father's eyebrows shot so far up that they almost disappeared into his hair.  
  
Her father, now a little amused, said, "May I see the letter?"  
  
"Uh... Sure," Amy replied, handing it over.  
  
After scanning the letter quickly and a fast glance at the supplies list, Mr. Blake said , "Well, that's good. This means that my old school things won't take up any space." He then gave the letter to her mother to look over.  
  
Meanwhile, the younger Blake kids were looking confused. Amy didn't understand any better.  
  
"Dad, what do you mean your old school things? What's this all about?"  
  
"Oh, that. Well, you see that bag by the door? Amy nodded well, grab it."  
  
Now extremely curious, Amy stood and went to grab the bag, then set it on the floor by her father and sat down.  
  
Her father reached into the bag and started taking things out. Once the bag was empty, there was a pile of all kinds of things on the table, including several books, little bottles of what looked like ink, and quite a few feathers.  
  
"Does this mean I can go?" asked Amy, her eyes wide with excitement.  
  
"Yes. You can go."  
  
~~~~~  
  
Over the next few days, Amy was very busy. She didn't have to be, but thought it necessary, as she knew nothing about the world she was readying herself to enter. She had her father send the letter saying that she would attend, and they were going to take a trip to London soon to get a few things. Amy really hoped that everyone would be okay without her there to do everything, since she was usually the one they counted on. But she was also wondering something else.  
  
"How come you never told us you were a wizard, Daddy?" She asked him.  
  
"Your mother and I wanted you to have a normal life, that's all," was his vague response.  
  
Amy didn't really understand, but satisfied herself with a simple, "Oh."  
  
Then came the day when she and her father would go to London. She wondered how she would get robes and a wand there, but she didn't ask questions. That would spoil the fun.  
  
The two walked along until they came upon a grubby pub with a sign that said, "The Leaky Cauldron". Seeing that there was a lot of commotion going on inside, Amy and her father went straight to the back.  
  
"What are we doing here, Dad?" She asked her father, who was counting bricks. She didn't have to wonder for long, however, because her father had found the brick and was now tapping it with a stick.  
  
"This," he said, leading her through the doorway that had appeared.  
  
As Amy stepped through, she was in awe. Now she knew where she would get everything. There were people in what she supposed were robes walking around, buying things that Amy had never seen before.  
  
"Wait here," said her father as he went inside a big building whose sign read "Gringotts Bank." While waiting, she saw a huge man and the green- eyed boy from school.  
  
"Hi!" She exclaimed while they entered.  
  
"Er. Hi." said the boy, following the huge man in.  
  
Just as Amy was wondering why the boy was in such a hurry, her father came out looking slightly ill. He handed her a heavy bag of coins and then lead her off to a shop called Madam Malkin's Robes for All Occasions, where she was measured, and soon paid for and walked out with three black robes.  
  
Next, they went to Ollivander's Wands, where she was once again measured. Then, Mr. Ollivander stood and asked her,  
  
"Which is your wand hand?"  
  
Amy looked at her father, confused.  
  
"Her left hand," her father replied for her.  
  
"Alright."  
  
Then the old man handed her a wand.  
  
"Holly, sixteen inches, with unicorn hair core. Good for charms. Now give it a wave."  
  
Amy waved the wand, and suddenly her whole self was filled with warmth. Mr. Ollivander raised an eyebrow, but said nothing as Amy paid for it and walked out.  
  
When they got home, Amy immediately put her things in her room and, tired from the trip, went straight to bed. In a week, she would be leaving for school. Only dreams of fun and friends invaded her mind that night as she slept. 


	2. Two

Soon came the day for Amy to depart. With one last kiss good-by to each of her parents (she had said all other good-by's the night before), she walked her trolley through the wall between platforms Nine and Ten. Amazed as she was that it actually worked, she kept walking. It was already 10:45, and she didn't want to be any later.  
  
After depositing her belongings at the back of the train, Amy boarded. In her quest for an empty compartment, she nearly tripped over a huge lump on the floor.  
  
"Ouch!" The lump exclaimed. It took Amy a moment to realize that this lump was a person.  
  
"Whoops!" Amy exclaimed, nervously. "I'm sorry. I didn't notice you there."  
  
"It's alright. Would you like to sit with me? Everywhere else is pretty much full, but we can probably find somewhere halfway vacant to sit."  
  
"Alright," said Amy, following. The other girl smiled.  
  
"By the way, I'm Claudia. What's your name?"  
  
"Hm? Oh, I'm Amy. Um, Claudia, (Amy giggled) would your last name happen to be... Lestrat?"  
  
Claudia turned around and began walking backwards. "Yeah. And yes, I know what you're talking about. I seem to get that a lot. Why? Have you read- -"  
  
She was stopped abruptly when she bumped into someone. Or, to be more precise, three someone's.  
  
Realizing who one of them was, Amy asked, "What in the world are you doing here, Draco?"  
  
The blonde boy looked up from his spot on the ground and scoffed. "It's you, is it? My, we're not having very many good encounters with people this morning, are we, Crabbe? Goyle?" Both of the big guys behind him shook their heads no.  
  
"Oh boy, you brought your cronies, too? And I was looking forward to this year," Amy replied.  
  
That's when Draco got angry. "Well, I guess I should have known when I saw your traitor of a father and the whore he calls his wife at the station, huh? By Merlin," he said, as he was standing up, "You would think that they would have stopped at the first four, wouldn't you? How-- "  
  
But his statement was interrupted when Amy punched him square in the nose."Don't you talk about my family in that way ever again!" She shouted. Then, grabbing Claudia by the arm, she went into the now empty compartment that the three boys had previously inhabited.  
  
Once they had sat down, Claudia stared at Amy in surprise. "I didn't think you would be capable of doing that when I first looked at you!" Amy smiled.  
  
"I didn't think I would do it, either. But then, I seem to be surprising myself a lot lately. Anyway. I think you were about to ask me whether I've read the Vampire Chronicles? Well, no. But I did see 'Interview of a Vampire', and I really liked it." So, for the rest of the ride the two girls had a long discussion of vampires and other magical creatures.  
  
~  
  
After a while, the train slowed down, and eventually halted. Then there came a loud voice from the front that called out "Firs' years! Firs' years this way!"  
  
Claudia and Amy both stood up and went out, along with a handful of other kids. Amy thought she recognized the big man, but shrugged it off and followed the line. The group was taken to a big lake, where they were told to get in a bunch of boats. Since they were the last two to get there, Amy and Claudia didn't have to share with anyone else.  
  
Then the man called out "Forward!" and the boats all obeyed. Before too long, the students all got their first look at Hogwarts. After a collective gasp from everyone, many voices cried out things like, "It's huge!"  
  
When they got to the shore and everyone had gotten off, they were all escorted into a room, where they were told by a stern old woman to stay and tidy themselves up.  
  
About ten minutes later, the same woman came back and introduced herself as Professor McGonagall.  
  
"Now children, you are about to be sorted. The four Houses into which you will be sorted are Ravenclaw, Slytherin, Gryffindor and Hufflepuff. The origins of each house are all honorable, and you should not be ashamed, no matter which House you are put in. You will all line up in a single file, and we will walk into the Great Hall. Once we are in there, you will each try on the Sorting Hat, which will decide where you go. You will then take your seat at your House table and wait for the Sorting to finish. Do you all understand? (she waited for everyone to nod) Good. Follow me, please."  
  
So everyone followed the old woman into a huge room filled with tons of people and four extremely large tables. Over each table hung a banner; Amy supposed that they were the symbols for each house.  
  
A stool was brought out, and an old, ratty, worn out hat placed on top of it. Once everyone had been still for a few moments, it broke into a song:  
  
Oh, you may not think I'm pretty, But don't judge on what you see, I'll eat myself if you can find A smarter hat than me.  
  
You can keep your bowlers black, Your top hats sleek and tall, For I'm the Hogwarts Sorting Hat, And I can cap them all.  
  
There's nothing hidden in your bead The Sorting Hat can't see, So try me on and I will tell you Where you ought to be.  
  
You might belong in Gryffindor, Where dwell the brave at heart, Their daring, nerve, and chivalry Set Gryffindors apart;  
  
You might belong in Hufflepuff, Where they are just and loyal, Those patient Hufflepuffs are true And unafraid of toil; Or yet in wise old Ravenclaw, If you've a ready mind, Where those of wit and learning, Will always find their kind;  
  
Or perhaps in Slytherin You'll make your real true friends, Those cunning folk use any means To achieve their ends.  
  
So put me on! Don't be afraid! And don't get in a flap! You're in safe hands (though I have none) For I'm a Thinking Cap!  
  
After that, Professor McGonagall took out a list. "Blake, Amy!" was the first name she called.  
  
Nervously, Amy stepped up and sat down on the stool. She set the Hat on her head.  
  
Suddenly, she could hear a voice:  
  
"Well, well, well. Choices, choices."  
  
"What do you mean, Mr. Hat?" Amy thought.  
  
"You have a wonderful mind, you work hard, you're brave, and you're very, very ambitious. You could go in any of these Houses. So you get a choice: Slytherin, Hufflepuff, Ravenclaw, or Gryffindor?"  
  
"Well... since I have a choice, I think I'll go to Slytherin."  
  
"Alright then. You will go to SLYTHERIN!"  
  
The last word the hat shouted out loud, and Amy went to the table that was cheering. She then sat and waited for "Lestrat, Claudia", who joined her in Slytherin. Her cheeriness at having a friend in her House ended, however, when Draco joined his goons in Slytherin. "Oh great," she thought, watching him sit down.  
  
Then, a moment later, after the Sorting was finished, with a very large amount of applause when Harry Potter got Sorted, for some strange reason. A very old man whom she recognized from Hogwarts, a History as Headmaster Dumbledore rose to speak.  
  
"Welcome to a new year, students. As a reminder to all the first years. you are to stay away from the Forbidden Forest at all times, and there is no wandering the castle after 10:00 PM. Also, there is no fighting, physical or by magic, in the corridors. And a new rule, everyone is to stay away from the third-story corridor who does not wish to die a slow and painful death." Then the old man sat down, waved his wand, and food suddenly appeared on the platters in front of them.  
  
Amy and Claudia ate until they were stuffed, and both were glad when the prefects got up and led the students to their dorms. The Slytherin dormitories were located in the dungeons behind a suit of Armour. Inside, there was a common room filled with rugs, chairs and sofas of greens and silvers. There was a large fire roaring in a stone fireplace that made the room strangely welcoming.  
  
The girls went down to their dorm and found their things waiting for them. There were only two other girls who agreed to move beds so that they could all sleep beside each other. Then they all changed and went to bed.  
  
Amy was asleep before her head hit the pillow. 


	3. Three

At about 7:00 the next morning, all the girls' alarm clocks went off  
  
simultaneously. Equally simultaneously, they were all slapped off. They  
  
all got dressed and trudged down to breakfast, all groggy and yawning.  
  
That sat in the only group of empty seats left which, coincidentally,  
  
were right next to Malfoy and his group.  
  
"Oh, is Amy-wamy tired?" he taunted. Amy just glared and retorted, "Why  
  
are you wearing makeup, dear cousin? Don't tell me that a son of the ever-  
  
perfect Narcissa Stephens has something to hide!" This caused the whole  
  
Slytherin table to crack up, plus some from the other three tables. Draco  
  
blushed. "Fair enough," he muttered.  
  
Amy and Claudia were able to eat the rest of their breakfast in peace,  
  
but left as soon as they received their schedules. As they walked toward  
  
their first class, which was Potions, Claudia asked Amy: "Is Malfoy  
  
really wearing makeup, or were you just trying at a comeback?"  
  
Amy sighed. "Draco's dad beats him, okay? Don't tell anyone, though;  
  
*I'm* not even supposed to know about it. But he uses makeup to cover up  
  
his bruises." Just then, they reached the classroom. "Well, we're the  
  
first ones here. Where do you want to sit?"  
  
"Oh, near the front, I guess."  
  
"Okay," Amy replied, walking toward the front two seats. Just as the two  
  
girls sat down, a tall man with long, black hair walked in. Seeing the  
  
girls, he frowned and asked, "Why are you here so early? Have you  
  
finished your breakfast already?"  
  
"Yes, sir," the two replied in unison. The dark-haired man smiled,  
  
looking at Claude. "And who might you be? I know who you are, Miss Blake,  
  
but I'm afraid I don't know your friend quite as well."  
  
Claudia blushed. "Oh, I'm just Claudia. Do you know each other?" Snape  
  
smiled once again. "Her father and I are close friends." He paused and  
  
looked at his watch. "Oh dear. I have something to do really fast.  
  
Amelia, if people start arriving between now and when I get back, would  
  
you please tell them that I'll be a little late? I should only be a  
  
moment." Not waiting for an answer, Snape hurried out the door.  
  
A few seconds later, some frizzy haired girl with weird teeth walked in.  
  
"Where's Professor Snape," she asked? "He'll be back in a minute," the  
  
other two replied in unison. As the other girl stood there blinking, Amy  
  
whispered something to Claudia then asked, "Hey, do you want to sit with  
  
us? I know you're from Gryffindor, but I promise, we're not prejudiced."  
  
She smiled as the brown-haired girl stood and blinked some more. "I'm  
  
Amy, and this is Claudia." "I'm Hermione," the girl muttered, walking  
  
toward the chair next to Amy.  
  
Just then, Professor Snape got back and the room started filling with  
  
students. Throughout the rest of the class, the three girls had fun  
  
watching Snape giving Potter a hard time. Claudia even dared Hermione to  
  
raise her hand as Harry was being asked questions.  
  
Since they had almost all their classes together, the three had fun like  
  
that for the rest of the day, only being separated because Hermione had  
  
to sit at her own House table at lunch and dinner. After dinner, they  
  
went to the library to finish their homework.  
  
As they separated one last time to go to bed, Hermione asked, "Why are  
  
you so nice to me? Most of the time, I'm known as the know-it-all."  
  
Claudia smiled. "So are we." She cocked her head. "Same thing tomorrow  
  
sound good?" Hermione smiled. "Sure." As she walked the opposite  
  
direction of the two blondes, she thought, 'It's hard to believe they're  
  
Slytherin. Are they leading me on?'  
  
It went much the same for a couple of months, until Halloween, the day  
  
Ron hurt Hermione's feelings so horribly. As soon as they could, Amy and  
  
Claudia went to the restroom to try and coax her into coming out. After  
  
about an hour, they gave up. Giving her a couple of sandwiches that  
  
they'd picked up at lunch, Claudia asked her: "Do you know that picture  
  
of the dark-haired man near Snape's classroom in the dungeons?"  
  
"Yeah," Hermoine replied.  
  
"Well, if you want to talk, the password's 'Monty Python', okay?"  
  
"Okay."  
  
Amy and Claudia bid Hermione good-bye, then went to their class, hoping  
  
their friend would be alright by the time of the feast. 


	4. Four

As Amy and Claudia walked in to the Great Hall for the Halloween Feast  
  
that evening, they began looking around for Hermione. After standing  
  
there for a few minutes, they decided to ask about her.  
  
"Hey, Ron, isn't it," asked Claudia as a red-haired boy walked in the  
  
door, "Have you seen Hermione since you insulted her this morning?"  
  
Ron frowned and replied, "No, I haven't. What would a couple of  
  
Slytherins like you want with her, anyway?"  
  
That set Amy off. "Alright, you bloody git! If you really must know,  
  
Hermione is our best friend. What I want to know is, why you people  
  
think you're so much better than us? Yes, many people that most would  
  
call 'bad' came from our house, but what about Gryffindor? Last I heard, Sirius Black was in Gryffindor. And you call yourselves  
  
good people! Good people don't discriminate against anyone, including  
  
one of their housemates!"  
  
Just then, Harry walked up beside Ron. "What's up," he asked?  
  
"Harry, isn't it," asked Amy? "Well, I would think that a person with  
  
such a history with people as yourself would choose better friends! Or  
  
are you a git yourself, now that you've found out about your parents'  
  
abilities? You used to be nice." Amy then stormed off, Claudia not far  
  
behind.  
  
As they reached the table and sat down, Amy muttered, "Why do I keep  
  
over-reacting like this?" Claudia grinned and replied, "PMS?" They  
  
both broke out in giggles.  
  
Just then, they were approached by Draco. The funny thing was, there  
  
was no Crabbe or Goyle with him. Just Draco. "Hey, Amy, can I talk  
  
with you for a minute? Alone?"  
  
"Um... Sure. Claude, save my seat, and one more in case Hermione comes  
  
back, okay?" Taking Claudia's nod, she walked out of the hall behind  
  
her cousin. Draco led her into and empty classroom and had her sit  
  
down.  
  
"Look, Amy, I know this is going to be hard, but you have to listen to  
  
me, alright?" Amy nodded, bracing herself. "Good." Draco took a deep  
  
breath. "You know that little sister of yours, not Brittany, but the  
  
other one?"  
  
"Tammy?"  
  
"Yes, her. You know how you have those woods surrounding your house?"  
  
Amy nodded once again. "Well, it seems that a train runs right through  
  
there, and we both know how daring Tamara is . . ." Amy's eyes  
  
widened, filling with tears.  
  
"Well," Draco continued, "Apparently, your sister and her friends were playing around those train tracks, and heard a train coming. One of her friends dared Tammy to run in front of the train, then dodge out of the way when it was almost there. She got her foot caught in the railing, and couldn't get away in time. The train's conductor used the emergency stop, but it was too late. She'd already died."  
  
Amy listened, staring at some invisible spot on the wall behind Draco, letting it all sink in. Her sister, her best friend, the only person before then that she'd ever really been able to talk to was . . . dead. A few seconds after she heard Draco finish, Amy began to cry. Silently at first, then big, choking sobs that echoed about the empty classroom. Draco hugged his cousin, awkwardly waiting for her to stop crying.  
  
Amy stopped crying after a few minutes, wiping her eyes on her sleeve. She pulled away from her cousin and stood, straightening her robes.  
  
"We should get back to the feast," she said, her voice still wavering a little, and began walking out of the room.  
  
"Amy," Draco called after her, She stopped. "Are you alright?"  
  
"Of course. Why wouldn't I be? If was a funny time for this to happen  
  
though, right? On Halloween... It'd seem almost typical." She cocked her head and offered a weak  
  
smile. "Aren't you coming?" Draco nodded again and stood up. Amy  
  
leaned her head on his shoulder.  
  
"Hey," he said, "Chin up. You wouldn't want to worry anyone, would  
  
you?" Amy laughed, and Draco smiled. "That's better."  
  
By the time they got back to the Great Hall, both had regained their  
  
composure. Before he went to sit down with his friends, though, Draco  
  
made sure she was okay. Snape caught Amy's eye and nodded. Amy  
  
smiled, and mouthed a quick "Thank you," then turned to Claudia, who by now was sick with worry for her friend, and filled her in, eating very little.  
  
Just then, Professor Quirrel (who, although nearly no-one noticed, had  
  
been missing the entire time), burst in the door, running and  
  
shouting, "TRO~~~LL! IN THE DUNGEONS!" He stopped in front of  
  
Dumbledore's chair, then said, "Thought you might want to know." Then  
  
he fainted.  
  
"He probably did it," Claudia commented as the Hall went into an  
  
uproar. Dumbledore got everyone quiet, then instructed the prefects to  
  
lead the students to their respective houses. The two girls saw Snape  
  
run out of a door to head the troll off.  
  
Following the rest of her house, Amy and Claudia saw a large  
  
monstrosity running up the stairs toward the bathroom where Hermione  
  
was, and had yet to leave. When they reached the dungeons, the girls  
  
saw Snape, and shouted: "Professor! It's up on the second floor!"  
  
Snape nodded and began sprinting toward the stairs.  
  
After they got to the common room, Amy, Claudia, and Draco went  
  
straight to bed; that evening had been too eventful for them to bear  
  
the crowded common room.  
  
As Amy dropped off, she sent her thoughts toward her little sister,  
  
and spent the night remembering curious little Tamara and all the  
  
trouble she got herself into. 


	5. Five

Next morning, Amy awoke feeling awful. She sat up in bed a moment,  
  
then remembered. Hugging her knees to her chest and rocked back and  
  
forth for a moment, before finally drawing a deep breath and getting  
  
dressed. After waiting for Claudia, she walked down to breakfast,  
  
neither saying a word. They were just as subdued as they sat down in  
  
their usual spot, Claudia eating slower than usual and Amy just  
  
picking at her food, a far-away look about her.  
  
"Amy," said Claudia, "Aren't you going to eat anything? You'll need  
  
your strength today."  
  
"I know, I know," replied Amy. "I'm just not too hungry right now."  
  
Just then, she saw Draco approaching. "Professor Snape told me to talk  
  
to you some more. Would you follow me, please?" Amy nodded, and turned  
  
to her friend. "Claude, if I'm late for first period, will you save me  
  
a seat? I don't know how long I'll be." Claudia nodded, and Amy  
  
followed Draco back to their common room. They sat on one of the  
  
couches, and Draco looked Amy in the eye.  
  
"I know you'd prefer it if your mother or dad told you all this, but  
  
they thought it would be easier if you heard it from someone in  
  
person, preferably someone you're semi-close to. Dumbledore says that  
  
he can't let us go home, not even this weekend, as much as he'd like  
  
to. Sadly enough, if he were to let students go home for a couple of  
  
days, there would be a lot of absences that most people would rather  
  
not explain.  
  
"Tammy is being cremated as we speak. They said that funerals are too  
  
depressing and, to be honest, are very boring. Tammy hated being  
  
around people who were in distress, and couldn't stay still for very  
  
long during her waking hours. Like that time she made my dad spill his  
  
coffee on himself, because she didn't want to wait any longer to go to  
  
the park."  
  
"Yeah, then she tried to cheer him up by giving him a bouquet of ant-  
  
infested roses." This drew laughter from the both of them.  
  
"Also, your parents told you to stay here this Christmas. It's not  
  
that they don't want you at home, but they're going to the States to  
  
visit some relatives and spread Tammy's ashes on Friday, and plan to  
  
stay until some time in January. I know you probably want to see them  
  
again, but there's nothing that can be done right now. They were  
  
already obligated to do this before all this happened, I think."  
  
"Yeah. Is that all?"  
  
Draco smiled knowingly. "Yes, that's all. Why don't you send an owl to  
  
your parents? They're probably anxious to hear from you."  
  
Amy smiled back, gratefully. "I think I will. Would you tell Professor  
  
Quirrel and Claudia where I am?"  
  
"Alright."  
  
Amy smiled again and went to her dorm to write letters to her family,  
  
forgetting all about classes for the time being. 


End file.
